Love Hina belongs to Akumatsu Ken. This fic belongs to me

It's a beautiful day, and Motoko feels (terrible) fine.

The last day of classes is nearly over, and Motoko has gotten back her final grades. As expected, they were (horrible) very good, despite the circumstances. At the very least, she wouldn't have to be worried over being forced to miss kendo and any spring tournaments (for now). Everyone in class is abuzz with excitement and joy, happily whispering their spring break plans with each other while she her gaze remains outside, (worrying) considering what to do for the next three days.

Urashima's "deadline" was almost upon them, and they had still made no progress in stopping his nefarious plot. Naru told them yesterday that they would have to make their move soon, but what that move exactly was had been left in the air, mostly due to her being busy dealing with finals at college (Though frankly, Mokoto thinks she actually had (despite her claim of the opposite) been distracted with the lengthy absence of Mitsune from their meetings – something that had the female warrior worried too), and for as much as she trusted her judgement, Motoko couldn't help but (fear) be impatient for a solution – and soon. The longer they waited, the sooner those despicable intruders would be on the steps of their precious Hinata and that dastard's plans would finally reach fruition.

She can already imagine it, him standing above them with this army of perverted invaders, him glaring down on them like he was some sort of god as Motoko rushed forth to challenge that glare, only to have her blade knocked away and herself pulled close to a chiseled bare chest as-

Her hands hit her desk hard, sending papers flying and alerting several students as well as their teacher. Cheeks burning, she's forced to mumble a meek apology as she regathered and straightens her things until she gives the impression of someone who was not causing a disturbance by having weird fantasies during their last lecture again before the teacher finally continued.

(She really did have to find some way to deal with these...unclean thoughts of hers. They seemed to be getting worse by the day and inserting themselves more frequently whenever she let her mind drift)

She tries to get back thinking about (his chest) possibly just going through with her main plan of sending a letter of challenge when a few birds fly past, their chirping distracting her from her train of thought as their songs rattled gratingly through her ears and caused her head to throb maddeningly at her. Her headache from the weeks before had subsided a bit over the last few days, but today it was acting in full force – Every little sound, from the scratching of pencils against notepads to the tap of chalk against the blackboard to even someone breathing reverberated within her skull a thousandfold, and it had been getting worse to the point that it made it hard to focus on anything else for more than a minute unless she forced herself.

Speaking of, she can't help but (force herself to) notice the fact that the trees are finally starting to bud when she glances outside, which thankfully made the throbbing an afterthought again. Everyone had been worrying over how much longer this "holdover winter weather" was going to plague them for, but it looked like their little cold-spell was finally reaching its end and allowing spring to burst free. That meant warmer weather now, the school ac being switched to "cool air", minifans, sunscreen…

Short sleeves and summer uniforms.

She unconsciously tugs at the collar of her uniform sleeve to cover her scab from yesterday. Scratching at her rashes was starting to make them bleed a little, and her funds had dwindled significantly over the last week thanks to those ants getting into her leftovers (even though she was so sure she sealed them and the tent), leaving little in the budget for bandages and the like.

Maybe she can borrow something from the nurse's office? Tell them it's for Kendo practice (which would be the truth – the itch from her hands made holding her practice blade (impossible) difficult). The staff knew she was dedicated in her training, wouldn't question it-

"Aoyama-san, can I speak to you for a bit?"

She looks up and sees half the seats empty. Had the teacher finished already? She was certain they still had a few minutes…

No matter, let's just get this done quick so I can meet up with Naru and the rest. She thinks, getting up from her desk Ah, I should ask to borrow a phone to call Lady Su before I leave, she seemed upset about something last ti-

But as she stood, her legs suddenly began to wobble, and her mind soon froze as her chest seizes painfully, as if her heart was trying to claw free of her from the inside out.

Voices rippled around her as she tried to take one single step, but it was all in vain as she tumbled to the ground, surrounded by her screaming classmates and panicking teacher.

And without understanding why, Motoko fell into darkness, feeling absolutely (fine) terrible.

When she had come to her decision, Mitsune spent the days following doing her absolute best to screen any and all calls from the group. She couldn't risk the chance of letting anything slip (especially if it was during one of her late night benders), and even if Su no longer had access to her lab or fancy toys, that didn't mean she might not find a way to track her down if she wasn't careful about how she proceeded.

(And yeah, she didn't like making the others worry about her like this, but she figured it wouldn't be too bad. Wouldn't be the first time she went silent on everyone, and all would have been forgiven once she succeeded in her plan…)

[Shinobu Maehara]

So when, after unconsciously checking her phone, Mitsune saw that familiar name show up, her heart had stopped as she felt herself frozen in place, hands slowly starting to shake.

Normally, the easy answer would be to just go and let the call go to voicemail, let her think they had missed each other or that Mitsune was nursing a daylong hangover, but…

She falls back against her futon, staring at the lack of decorations in her room. After getting kicked out, a good third of them went the way of the pawn shop to either scrounge up booze money or give herself a little extra to keep a few determined bookies off her back. The only things she managed to keep were some of her clothes, her betting book, and gifts from the girls and-

("Don't come back.")

She sits up again, still feeling the phone buzz in her hands.

She hadn't planned on Keitaro rejecting her offer, and she hadn't planned on continuing going silent on everyone. She had been betting on things between them still being positive enough that she could go back to everyone with her head held high and declaring she had solved all their problems.

She felt it ring again.

A memory of the old encounter pops up – the poor girl looked terrified when Mitsune had caught her going down the same path back to the dorms, fearful beyond belief over the fact that she had near broken their promise of solidarity on an unconscious whim. How would she feel if she learned Mitsune had given in to the urge, betrayed them all on a self-given dare and then ran inside to the inn's safety because the thought of coming back with her tail between her legs and hat in hand to tell them it didn't work, that her violation of their Naru-driven oath was in vain, had terrified her to her core?

There went another one. Two more and it'd go straight to voicemail.

She counts in her head. There's only three days left on the deadline, and once that was over what would be her excuse? What hail-mary could she grab? Naru was her friend but even that hadn't saved her the few times she prodded a bit too far with her teasing, made a joke one too many (stole a heart she shouldn't have). How likely would that bond save her from the redhead's wrath once she learned the real reason for Mitsune ghosting her these past few days. How would she explain away her lone presence at the dorm in way that could save her neck from the chopping block? That would preserve their relationship, even for a scant second

One ring left.

But...maybe if she wasn't by herself? Maybe if she had come here to assist another girl who fell to the temptation – say, a shy young thing with an adorable precocious crush on the current manager who couldn't dare throw away her first love or the chance of being near him? And if said girl made a mistake, could she be blamed if she decided to take the plunge with her, to ensure that if she was going to fall into hell, than at least she would make sure that she was falling with a friend?

Besides, Shinobu's a good girl, she probably won't say anything if I asked…right?

The phone gives one last buzz, and against her better judgement (or maybe because her better judgement was bad from the start), Mitsune presses talk and holds the phone to her ear

[...Ah, you finally picked up]

She blinked. Was that Shinobu? She sounded...different.

(It didn't give her the same feeling Keitaro did when he changed, but the same anxiety that followed afterwards was still the same)

She gets up to head for the window. The walls were thick enough if memory served, but that didn't mean she couldn't be careful "Y-yeah, sorry! Was trying to get the barkeep to give me a free refill." she lies, hoping her voice isn't shaking as badly as she is. "So what's up? Don't tell me you-"

[You're still at the Hinata right?]

Her throat went dry immediately "W-What do you mean? I told you, I-"

[Please don't lie to me, Mitsune-chan,] Shinobu pressed, sounding not unlike a mother quickly cutting through her child's lies about why they came home in muddy shoes [I saw you last week. You're at the Hinata right now aren't you–] there's a pause as she hears her try to settle herself [You...you got your room back, didn't you?]

The air feels thin and her head is spinning – and for once, she can't blame a hangover for it. "S-shinobu-chan, listen I…."

And once again, Shinobu wouldn't hear any of it

[I'm coming over] she says, that scolding-mother tone returning [I'm just letting you know ahead of time.]

"O-oh?" she sputters, all too happy that an excuse to move the conversation away from herself had just landed in her lap. "You're gonna sign too, that's wonderful!" and forced a grin despite knowing it couldn't be seen "Hey, maybe now you'll have a better chance of wrangling a date out of Kei-chan! I mean, it'd be a pity date, but everybody's gotta start somewhere right? And we all know how much Kei-chan hates making you cry anyhow, so there's no way he'll say no!"

Instead of getting a meek stammer or flustered denial, all she heard was a curt [goodbye] and the receiver click as the call cut off.

She falls back, nerves alighted again. Great, just great. Shinobu knew (knew for a while turns out, and a good long one) what she did, and now she's coming over! And her coming over means missing the meeting, and missing the meeting meant Naru.

Naru, who would send in the cavalry immediately because while Mitsune being missing just meant keeping an ear open at the local pubs, Shinobu being missing meant having to call in the local militia to turn the town upsidedown because there's no way poor sweet Shinobu would miss a meeting on her own, no sir!

Naru, who would eventually track her down to the inn because she would sooner or later because god likely hated her enough right now to make it happen.

Naru – who would find out that Mitsune not only signed the lease behind her back, but also exposed their whole "spy" plan and how things were actually going to the last person she wanted hearing about it, from a person she trusted more than anything!

(A person who even their old friendship wouldn't protect...)

She lets out a terrified moan and presses her hands against her face.

….Maybe if I'm lucky, I could cut them off at the hedge, she considers meekly. The fact that Shinobu called her first means it'll be a while before she arrives at the Hinata right? Maybe she can meet up with her halfway and talk the young girl out of whatever it is she's planning before figuring out a way to get their cover-stories straight and maybe, just maybe, talk Naru down from-

Her phone rung again and instead of picking it up, she stands and heads for the door in a burning panic. There's no time to waste

It takes an hour and a half to get to the inn from Seta's place after all.

[Motoko's in the hospital]

When Haruka sees the response Mutsumi gives her when she texts to see why she hadn't arrived for her shift yet, she nearly drops her phone.

Motoko's in the hospital.

(This is your fault)

Motoko's in the hospital.

(You didn't help)

Motoko's in the hospital.

(You left them on their own)

Motoko's in the hospital.

(You wanted to be "tough" on them)

Motoko's in the hospital.

(Motoko's a child, of course it'd get like this)

Motoko's in the hospital.

(Didn't you promised granny you'd look out for them?)

Haruka orders the shop to close for the day and sends everyone home, much to her customer's disgruntlement and her workers confusion, "Motoko's in the hospital" nipping right on her heels.

"What do you mean we can't see her?!"

After receiving Motoko's call, the three remaining former Hinata member had made a straight beeline for the hospital. Su had taken to remain in the back as Naru and Mutsumi went to the reception desk to learn of Motoko's room location, but…

"A-as I said, her condition still considered unstable and the doctors are observing her, so I can't give out her room number!" the quivering woman in front explained, hiding behind her clipboard "Y-you'll have to wait until her guardian's arrived and the doctor's given permission for visitation…"

"Who cares about that!" yells Naru, slamming a fist on top of the counter "Our friend's hurt – let us see her! She shouldn't be alone right now!"

Mutsumi grabs her arm to gentle pull her back slightly before leaning over the counter herself "Please ma'am," she pleaded with worry marring her beautiful features "We're just really worried about her – can't we just see her for a little bit?"

But the receptionist shakes her head, violet curls bouncing as she worried her bottom lip "I'm really sorry, but I can't. The rules state that patients under observation aren't allowed visitors-"

That just made Naru more upset and louder, and Kaolla can't help but flinch away from the sound as people shuffle and whisper in the background (the word "code grey" is repeated by someone in the far back, but Kaolla can't tell who), nervously wringing her hands. She should be helping Mutsumi calm Naru down, she knows this, but Naru's being scary, too scary to approach, and all she could think about was Motoko's sick, Motoko's sick Motoko's sick and Kaolla wasn't there with her, couldn't help her. Motoko's sick, and Kaolla can't see her, can't find out what's wrong. She can' make any machines to help get rid of whatever's put her in the hospital. She can't help make her feel better, or cure her, or do anything because Motoko's sick and they can't see her it isn't right it isn't fair she wants to see Motoko she needs to know she's okay and if they can go home yet-!

There's loud crack and Kaolla opens her tearstained eyes to see Naru pressing her hand into the imprint her fist made in the counter.

"Listen to me," she hissed, digging her fingers into the cracks "My friend is in trouble – If we wait for her family to get here then it'll be too late and we're never going to see her again! You have to let us see her now!"

The receptionist immediately dropped her clipboard and turned pale, as did Mutsumi as she eyes the way the linoleum scrapped against her friend's knuckles and the harsh whispers that near hid the scuttling of feet down the opposing hall, and quickly got in between them.

"What she means is she doesn't have a good relationship with her family." Mutsumi interrupts, doing her best to not notice the glare she was receiving "She normally wouldn't call them in this instance."

She then grabs the woman's shaking hands, eyes shimmering "Please, we're just worried." she pleaded "We won't cause any trouble, or interfere with her treatment. Can you just let please us talk to her, just for a minute or two – or at least tell us she's okay..."

The receptionist is looking between the two, clearly wondering which was the better option for negotiation – only for it not to matter because at that point hospital security showed up (apparently that "Code Gray" she kept hearing means "Someone's being scary, so bring someone scarier over").

"Oh thank goodness you're here Mr. Ushio!" the receptionist cried while Naru whipped her enraged gaze on the newly arrived target "Please help me! These girls keep demanding to see the patient that got brought in."

At first, the security guard Ushio had been just as nice and tolerant as the receptionist had been at the start, but with Naru's stubbornness and already flared tempter taking point, they just ended up with more arguing and pleading that went nowhere. Eventually, once it was clear she wouldn't budge, Naru was "escorted" away back to the entrance, cussing and hissing the whole way back. The only reason Kaolla was not made to go with them was because Mutsumi was the only one acting calm enough to reveal that Kaolla was Motoko's charge.

(Though honestly, Kaolla thinks the real reason was likely in due to her still crying at that point.)

"We're still in contact with her school, so I'm going to go back and try and have at the front desk confirm this." he mumbles, eyeing them both sternly "If – and this is a big 'if', your story checks out, you'll" and points and Kaolla "be allowed to wait in the visitors area and only there. Once her guardian arrives, and if they recognize you, you might be given the option to come by around visiting hours once the patient is cleared, otherwise I'm having you leave the premise - understood?"

The two nod meekly, and he gives them another once over before heading towards the receptionist desk, leaving another fellow security guard to watch them.

Mutsumi asked Kaolla to wait for her while she goes to check on Naru, leaving the girl alone in the large hallway with her dark, swirling thoughts.

Big Sister Motoko sick, she's sick and Su can't do anything to help her…

She quietly paced in place, trying to think of something she could do in the meantime feeling the eyes of the guard and the people watching pierce into her…

The light scratch of pen on paper fluttered in and out his ears

[Thank you for the information – we'll contact her guardians right away and let them know what's occurred.] the woman on the other line says as the noise died down, sounding extremely grateful

"Of course," Keitaro replies, putting down his signature on the form before him. The people he spoke to about Su's lab called yesterday and told him it would take much longer and a lot more work than expected to help remove it than they originally estimated, so he had to resign some of the original contract form as well as a few new documents to assure everything would go smoothly.

[Are you certain you don't need to be kept posted on her condition?] she asks, and he makes too long a stroke on the last kanji for his surname, forcing him to scratch it out to rewrite.

"I'm…certain," he says, though he feels like his voice doesn't agree with him, "As I said, she's no longer my tenet, so this is now a matter between her and her family and only them. Whatever happens next, they should be able to handle from there."

There's a tense silence that twists with the pause […Alright then.] she says [Thank you again for providing us the contact info we needed. Have a pleasant rest of your day]

Keitaro puts down the phone and returns to his paperwork – or at least tries to. It's hard to let himself get lost in the flow of marking off boxes and signing papers.

([We're calling because your resident Aoyama-san was sent to the hospital and your dorm was the only listed emergency contact])

It doesn't matter, he's washed his hands of the problem. The minute he sent them out the door, he was no longer responsible for what they did outside of the inn. He told her (all of them) what the new expectations were, let her know she had a choice, that she was the one who had to decide what had more importance – her so-called "pride" or retaining her living space. If she got herself injured during her indecision, then that was on her.

([We're really not sure – It seems she just…passed out in the middle of lessons. The teacher present managed to keep her stable till the paramedics arrived])

He didn't have to care about it. It's not like she ever showed him the same courtesy in the past – How many times had he been injured by her sword with her showing no remorse or pity? How many times has he called the inn when her swings sends him somewhere downtown he doesn't recognize, only to be hung up on? How many times has he woken up in his room (alone, isolated with his thoughts and the throbbing bruises), the last memory being a bokken and Motoko's disgusted face baring down on him.

("Motoko's giving herself leprosy right now because she so fucking stubborn...because she thinks that any day now, you're going to walk right up to her tent in the park and tell her you surrender-")

He slams his pen down and runs his hands over his hair, trying desperately to breath.

"It doesn't matter." he says, over and over and over until he can hear it echoing against the walls, his ears,the ticking of the clock, the pounding of his heart

It doesn't matter, she isn't your tenet anymore…Or your friend….

Again, repeats the phrase, until he feels his throat go raw from the repetition. Once he's certain he's calmed, he goes back to writing, hands suddenly feeling too clammy to properly hold his pen, even though the AC is running.

Moments later, His phone rings again

Mutsumi rung her hands nervously as she made her way to the hospital entrance, pointedly looking down to ignore all the people hurriedly whispering to each other while looking outside.

Naru, to her credit, actually waited until she was out of view and earshot of others before beginning to steam over their being sent outside like children being made to sit in the corner.

(She scolds herself for wording it so crassly like that)

"Those goddamn bastards!" Naru cursed, kicking a nearby parking sign and causing it to tilt "The hell do they mean 'patients can't have visitors who aren't family?! The hospital I went to back when I was little was fine with me getting visits from friends when the docs were checking me over, even when mom couldn't come and stay with me!"

"W-well, they probably have a different policy here" Mutsumi hums anxiously, eyes lingering on the dents Naru was leaving.

"It's still bullshit!" the redhead hissed, who then turn to glare at the entrance like it had personally affronted her. "Just who the hell do they think they are?!"

Before she could even reply to that, Naru suddenly stops her pacing to, lip twitching as her eyes narrowed "…You know what? I bet you that fucking bastard Keitaro told them to keep us out after contacting Mokoto's sister! That's the only reason they'd keep us from seeing her."

She tries to keep the uncertainty from entering her face but the way Naru's eyes flicker over at her says she might not have succeeded "Why would he do that though? Kei-kun has no reason to keep us from visiting Motoko-han while she's hurt."

"The same reason he's doing everything else – to be an asshole!" Naru snaps back, hand indenting the concrete block of the parking barrier "It's not enough he dumps me and spreads rumors behind my back – now he's pulling this bullshit! Can you believe that bastard!?"

Mutsumi worries her bottom lip a bit, unsure and unable to answer back as Naru begins her incensed pacing again, grumbling under her breath.

That seemed to be Naru's answer to everything lately – that everything bad going on in her life and everyone cruel in it was occuring just for the sake of it, with one certain bespectacled someone being the center of the chaos, masterminding every terrible tragedy that had befell them after they had been forced to leave the Hinata. Everything from the terrible rumors still going on to her poor performance in the finals all somehow kept coming to Keitaro, that he was running around in the shadows, somehow making sure Naru's day was ruined and specifically only hers.

She hadn't argued against it the first time it came up because she understood Naru was just upset at all the bad breaks she was getting lately and needed to vent. She didn't mean it anyways, was just...upset and saying whatever she could to help rationalize the problem, knowing full well what the truth was. For all her anger, even she couldn't seriously believe Keitaro was somehow going out of his way to make her current life miserable right?

(Right?)

Naru didn't seem happy with her lack of a response (or what it might have implied) and dug deeper into the concrete, and Mutsumi's eyes couldn't help but try and scan for a security camera

"M-may'be you should be trying to call Mitsune again?" she babbled quickly, meekly threading her hands together as her accent poured in "She, um, prob'ly doesn't know what's happenin' right now."

It was obvious as the time of day that she was trying to change the subject, but her little ploy seemed to do the trick as Naru release her death grip on the parking block and fishes for her cellphone.

"Knowing the time it is right now, she probably doesn't even know where her left shoe is…" she grumbled as she held the phone to her ear, though there was clearly no malice in her comment.

The two stood there in awkward, tense silence, the only sound between them being the muted ringing.

"Naru, Mutsumi?"

Both turned at once, the phone and its (unanswered) ringing forgotten as they see the familiar figure of Haruka slowly jogging over to them.

"Haruka-san?" Mutsumi gasped "What're you doing here? The shop should still be open."

"I got your guys text and came as soon as I can." she answers, pausing to catch her breath (even if she was cutting back on her cigarettes, running like she did probably did a number on her) "What's happening, where-"

Before she could even think to reply, Naru go between them, bearing her teeth in a suspicious snarl "Why are you here?" she hissed "Last I checked, you said you didn't care what happens to us."

The older Urashima frowned, eyes narrowed in frustration (and maybe a twinge of regret) "Not interfering with what's going on with the dorm and being worried when I hear someone's in the hospital are two very different things Naru."

Quick to intercept Naru's next snappish reply, Mutsumi bobbed her head out from behind Naru's shoulder, arms wrapped around of hers to keep steady (and the redhead near) "St-still, it's very kind of you to come! I'm sure Motoko will be so relieved to see all her friends coming to check on her like this!"

Instead of replying, Haruka let her eyes drift around the area, finally taking notice of the state the parking sign and the area around it are in.

"I see you two have been waiting for a while," she says coolly, clearly wanting a way to voice her disapproval without actually doing so out of consideration the of the current situation "Are they not letting her have visitors yet."

"No," Mutsumi answers quickly, cutting Naru off again "Um, she's still under observation apparently – but they let Su stay since she's technically Motoko's charge. We have to wait until her guardian get here apparently."

That causes Haruka to raise a brow, thought there's a sense of tenseness that settles in her form "Guardian? You mean her parents are coming?"

Mutsumi tries to intervene again, but Naru actually ripped her arm away to step forward, finally tired of being cut off

"No," Naru spat, voice acidic "Your bastard of a nephew called-"

"Oh my."

The three froze, all turning slowly to stare at the form of Tsuruko Aoyama, who stood at the hospital entryway with a man they didn't recognize, her crane staring icily from her shoulder as she fanned herself..

"If it isn't Motoko's friends," she says, razor sharp smile piecing them just as deeply as the first time they met as she closed her fan shut "Did you come to check on my sister as well?"

Motoko wakes up and feels (fine) (okay) (terrible) awful

"Oh, thank goodness! Doctor Shimeno – the patient's awake now." the nurse beside her smiled, breathing a sigh of relief while Motoko struggled to take one breath.

"W-wha..." she tries to asks, throat so raw it garbled and shredded the words before they could exit her mouth.

The doctor on the other side of her places a gentle hand on her shoulder "Careful, you're still weak from the emergency saline transfusion we had to do." she explains, going back to her chart, "Not to mention the malnutrition and extreme exhaustion you're suffering from. You can go back to resting if you need to."

She wants to ask more, but the throbbing makes it have to form words that she knows aren't going to come out, not with how cottony and grainy her throat feels.

So she does as suggested and lets her eyes close again, drifting of to the sounds of the woman's muttering as she goes over her chart while still checking her over.

"-never seen someone in such a state – how did the teacher take so long to notice..."

When she wakes up again, she still feels terrible and her throat aches even more, but it's less worse than before, and she feels able to talk now.

She also realizes that her hands and face are bandaged, and there's a cool, slick substance sitting underneath them.

"What happened." she asks, doing her best to hold still as the tiny light of the flashlight makes her eyes sting.

The doctor hums to herself and motions with her free hand for the nurse to pick up her chart before answering.

"As stated before, you were suffering from a terrible combination of malnutrition and exhaustion, as well as that terrible skin rash brought on by exposure." she explained "Your teachers called our hospital after you passed out at school, and the ambulance brought you here. They were quite worried about you."

The blurry memory of trying to answer her teacher's summons blinks forward painfully, but everything after that is stuck in an aching haze.

"We've treated you as best we can, but you'll need time to recover." Doctor Shimeno continued "But don't worry, we've already getting in contact with your guardian, so they should be on their way here soon."

The news brought a disgusted (and ashamed) shudder through her, especially when she remembers exactly who is listed as her guardian at school.

(She had thought about switching it, or naming Naru or Mitsune, giving the excuse of Urashima being temporarily unavailable or some sort of dorm emergency that made contacting them impossible – but doing something like that would be like admitting defeat to Urashima and his devious plans, and the last thing an Aoyama and heir to the Shinmeiryuu style should do is admit defeat to the enemy)

(It had nothing to do with the strange ache that followed when the idea even passed her mind)

"Look, I can't let that…Urashima shouldn't see me like this, you need to tell him not to come." Especially when I'm too weak to properly face him right now….

The doctor and nurse exchanged looks, brows furrowed in confusion.

"Urashima? Is that the name of your guardian?" the nurse asks, pursing her pink lips "Do you need us to call him instead?"

Motoko blinked. They hadn't called Urashima? But the dorm's phone number was the only contact she had given to her school, and she doubts the dastard could have just ignored a call from them regarding her wellbeing (not unless he wanted the entire schoolboard on his doorstep) "Wait, who did you contact then?"

"The name your teacher's provided from your emergency contact list." the doctor states, frowning deeper. "The person in charge of the place listed as your main residences apparently gave it to them. Was that a mistake?"

That caused Mokoto's mouth to dry as it set into a hard line and the gears in her head slowly turned. Urashima wasn't coming (admittedly, the thought that he was so entrenched in his little scheme that he couldn't even be bothered to see if she was okay had…hurt a little, strangely), but he got the hospital in contact with someone who said they were her guardian and would be on their way to see her. Just who was it?

Haruka? She hadn't been on her emergency contact list for a long while now, and after their last meeting with her…

Naru? Perhaps – they did meet up at her school a lot. But she wasn't on a familiar enough basis with the teachers to have her name or contact memorized

Seta? Impossible. She really only knew him through Naru, and even then their relationship was non-existent

Granny? But it should be nighttime where she is right now, and she doubts she has the time to answer.

Her coach? But she would have been with Motoko the moment she woke up, or at least already be present on the hospital grounds.

Thinking started to hurt, and she rubbed her temple. Much as she racked her brain, she couldn't think anyone it could possibly be. The only other option was that maybe Kanako was up to her old tricks again, but she was still very much tightly wound around Granny's leash at the moment as far as Motoko knew. The only other options outside of her was-

A terrified chill went down her spine, and just in time for another nurse to enter

"Oh, she awake." the elderly woman gasped before relaying those horrid, damning words to the other two in the room "Ah, Doctor Shimeno! I need to let you know Miss Motoko's older sister said she'll be heading straight here after she gets in contact with the dormitory she's staying at."

"Doctor, may I have my cellphone - I, I need to call someone!"

There's a knock on the entrance door.

Keitaro stops and blinks in surprise as he stares at yet another familiar face on his doorstep

"Hello senpai." Shinobu says, a chillingly calm smile on her face "May I come in?"

[3 days left until the end of Winter Term at Tokyo U]

Hey guys, we've got an update again!

I'm really sorry this took so long - a lot of stuff was happening IRL, and this chapter was difficult to write out because I was having trouble figuring out what I wanted happening during when and who should be doing what while maintaining the timeline I made last chapter.

(Please note that while I did do my research for this, I am also stretching the believablilty with some of the hospital stuff because fic is fic is fic)

I know everyone was looking forward to the Tsuruko-Keitaro convo, but that sadly will have to wait for another time, same with the Motoko breakdown.

I honestly questioned if I should have the Keitaro scene or not, and ultimately decided yes. For all his new dislike, I don't think Keitaro would genuinely be unaffected if one of the girls did get hurt and he heard about it. He might have cut himself off from the girls, but old habits do actually die hard, especially when you hear the phrase "Someone's in the hospital". Same for Haruka.

On the other side, Naru's downward spiral continues - now with more property damage. I ultimately decided not to provide her POV because I wanted to show precisely how her responses are looking to outside parties. It's at this point Naru's continuously ricocheting between "Anger" and "Denial" stage of bad breakups, where everything and anything bad is someone's fault, and everything piece of bad news just sets off a chain reaction that can only be dealt with in the one way she always has - breaking something. When or where that something becomes someone thought...Well, unless someone either talks her down or finally decides to tell her she's being genuinely scary in regards to her temper, things are just gonna keep getting worse. Maybe Mutsumi and her slowly cracking rose-glasses can help with that...

(Also, personal headcanon that Mutsumi goes heavy on her accent when she's upset/panicked)

Also, Su is also getting worse. Things that she could once very easily just deal away with a machine or experiment keep popping into her life and causing her stress, and now her closest and dearest friend is suffering in a way she can't just undo or deal with like normal while two others keep getting angrier/despondent in ways she doesn't know how to handle. Gotta wonder how long it'll take for this to blossom into a new problem.

Meanwhile, Mitsune's dealing with her own issues. While she might have learned a harsh lesson with Keitaro and her subsequent breakdown, she still has the impending issue of letting Naru and the rest know she "broke" and signed the new lease and...well, you know Kitsune - and so long as she can at least maybe pull off one last trick, grasp at one last straw, she ain't calling it quits yet. And if there's a way to (use) help Shinobu that just happens to benefit her, well, a happy coincidence!

And Shinobu's shows up at the scene - but is this good news or bad news...

Anyways, thanks for reading - see you next chapter!